Matthew 6:26

Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Jesus addresses his followers immediately after commanding them to cease anxiety over food and clothing in Matthew 6:25. He positions this observation as the logical bridge between the prohibition of worry and the futility of anxious calculation in Matthew 6:27.

The words — The imperative ἐμβλέψατε (emblepsate) means "do look," directing attention toward the πετεινὰ (peteina) or "birds" of the οὐρανοῦ (ouranou) or "air." This pairing establishes the visual exercise required to ground the subsequent comparison.

The thread — The pattern of divine provision for uncalculating creatures runs through Luke 12:24 and Psalms 147:9, while Matthew 10:29 extends the same logic to God's sovereignty over sparrows. These passages collectively establish the argument that God's care scales with the creature's value.

Why it lands — The text states that the heavenly Father feeds birds that neither sow nor reap, then asks whether the listener is not far more valuable. It demands a concrete recalibration of priority from anxious labor to recognized worth.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

Cross-references

Matthew 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.
Psalms 147:9 He provides food for the animals, and for the young ravens when they call.
Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storehouse or barn; yet God feeds them. How much more valuable you are than the birds!
Job 38:41 Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God as they wander about for lack of food?
Psalms 145:15 The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in season.
Psalms 104:27 All creatures look to You to give them their food in due season.
Luke 12:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.
Matthew 6:32 For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
Genesis 1:29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food.
Matthew 7:9 Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?